CALIFORNIA, USA: In a move designed to expand its global market share in fibre channel (FC) switching, QLogic Corp. announced that its 5800V and 5802V series 8Gb FC switches are now available from HP.

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This is available in the form of scalable SAN solutions for use with HP's server and storage portfolios, including HP BladeSystem virtual connect, HP SstorageWorks modular smart array (MSA) and HP StorageWorks enterprise virtual array (EVA) systems.

Branded as the HP StorageWorks SN6000 Stackable 8Gb FC switches, the switches incorporate QLogic's unique inter-switch link (ISL) technology, which enables companies to reduce total-cost-of-ownership by up to 43 percent compared to non-stackable alternatives, according to a recent economic value study from Wikibon 1.

The switch has 10 gigabit per second (Gbps) FC stacking ports, which can be upgraded to 20 Gbps.

Jesse Parker, vice president and general manager, Network Solutions Group, QLogic, said: "QLogic continues to innovate and lead the way in fibre channel stackable switch solutions. Our 8Gb Fibre Channel switches provide industry-leading performance while allowing businesses to build scalable SANs with minimal business disruption at considerably lower costs and significantly reduced complexity."

Bob Wilson, vice president, Platforms Division, StorageWorks, HP, said: "Customers can mitigate risk by adopting a networking infrastructure that can scale in a modular, non-disruptive way as storage needs change. The HP SN6000 Stackable FC switches utilizing 8Gb fibre channel technology deliver storage networking that customers can leverage to keep up with growing data volumes."